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United States Patent |
6,076,711
|
McGuffey
|
June 20, 2000
|
High flow pneumatic adhesive applicator valve
Abstract
A high-flow, pneumatically-controlled hot melt adhesive applicator valve
assembly comprises a housing which includes a lower module body within
which a die orifice is defined. A ball valve member is operatively
associated with the die orifice, and a hot melt adhesive charge passageway
is provided within the module body so as to fluidically conduct the hot
melt adhesive to the die orifice. A middle-air cylinder is disposed atop
the module body and defines a first cylinder chamber therein, and an
upper-air cylinder is disposed atop the middle-air cylinder and defines a
second cylinder chamber therein. The valve member is fixedly mounted upon
the lower end of a piston rod, and first and second pistons are fixedly
mounted upon axially central and upper end portions of the piston rod so
as to define with the piston rod and the first and second cylinder
chambers a dual-piston multiplier assembly. OPEN and CLOSE air passageways
are fludically connected to the cylinder chambers so as to actuate the
dual-piston multiplier assembly vertically upwardly or downwardly so as to
move the valve member accordingly. The middle-air cylinder includes an
internal OPEN air passageway such that OPEN air is simultaneously
fludically connected to the first and second cylinder chambers so as to
simultaneously actuate the first and second pistons of the dual-piston
multiplier assembly.
Inventors:
|
McGuffey; Grant (Springfield, TN)
|
Assignee:
|
Illinois Tool Works Inc. (Glenview, IL)
|
Appl. No.:
|
271872 |
Filed:
|
March 18, 1999 |
Current U.S. Class: |
222/504; 222/559 |
Intern'l Class: |
B67D 003/00 |
Field of Search: |
222/504,518
91/520,533
|
References Cited
U.S. Patent Documents
3398647 | Aug., 1968 | Baltus et al. | 91/533.
|
3402778 | Sep., 1968 | Carter et al. | 91/533.
|
3485141 | Dec., 1969 | Ott et al. | 91/533.
|
3554088 | Jan., 1971 | Bruyn | 91/533.
|
3580435 | May., 1971 | Bertilsson | 222/504.
|
3690518 | Sep., 1972 | Baker et al. | 222/504.
|
3752161 | Aug., 1973 | Bent | 91/533.
|
4852773 | Aug., 1989 | Standlick et al. | 222/504.
|
4988015 | Jan., 1991 | Price | 222/504.
|
5247870 | Sep., 1993 | Brasca et al. | 91/520.
|
5467899 | Nov., 1995 | Millaer | 222/504.
|
5887768 | Mar., 1999 | Price et al. | 222/504.
|
5924607 | Jul., 1999 | Yamada et al. | 222/504.
|
5934521 | Aug., 1999 | Yamada et al. | 222/504.
|
Primary Examiner: Morris; Lesley D.
Assistant Examiner: Kim; Christopher S.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Schwartz & Weinrieb
Claims
What is claimed as new and desired to be protected by Letters Patent of the
United States of America, is:
1. A material dispensing valve assembly, comprising:
a housing having a longitudinal axis;
a die orifice defined within a first axial end of said housing and through
which a material is able to be dispensed;
first passageway means defined within said housing for conducting the
material to be dispensed to said die orifice;
a valve seat operatively associated with said die orifice;
a valve member operatively associated with said valve seat for movement
between OPENED and CLOSED positions with respect to said valve seat;
a piston rod for supporting said valve member upon a first axial end
portion thereof;
first and second cylinder chambers defined within axially central and
second axial end portions of said housing;
first and second pistons mounted upon axially central and second axial end
portions of said piston rod and respectively disposed within said first
and second cylinder chambers so as to define with said piston rod and said
first and second cylinder chambers a dual-piston multiplier assembly;
a first OPEN air passageway defined within said housing for transmitting
OPEN air into said first cylinder chamber for acting upon a first surface
portion of said first piston, and a second OPEN air passageway defined
within said housing and disposed externally of said piston rod for
transmitting OPEN air from said first cylinder chamber into said second
cylinder chamber for acting upon a first surface portion of said second
piston in order to simultaneously move said first and second pistons in a
first direction so as to lift said valve member from said valve seat and
OPEN said valve assembly so as to permit dispensing of the material from
said die orifice; and
CLOSE air passageway means defined within said housing for transmitting
CLOSE air to second surface portions of said first and second pistons in
order to simultaneously move said first and second pistons in a second
direction so as to move said valve member toward said valve seat and CLOSE
said valve assembly so as to terminate dispensing of the material from
said die orifice.
2. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein said housing
comprises:
a lower module body within which said die orifice is disposed;
an axially central middle-air cylinder disposed axially atop said lower
module body and within which said first cylinder chamber is disposed; and
an upper-air cylinder disposed axially atop said middle-air cylinder and
within which said second cylinder chamber is disposed.
3. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 2, wherein said OPEN air
passageway means comprises:
a first OPEN air passageway defined within said lower module body and
fludically connected to said first cylinder chamber defined within said
middle-air cylinder; and
a second OPEN air passageway defined within said middle-air cylinder and
fluidically connecting said first cylinder chamber defined within said
middle-air cylinder to said second cylinder chamber defined within said
upper-air cylinder such that OPEN air can simultaneously impinge upon said
first surface portions of said first and second pistons.
4. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 2, wherein said CLOSE air
passageway means comprises:
a first CLOSE air passageway defined within said middle-air cylinder and
fluidically connected to said first cylinder chamber defined within said
middle-air cylinder; and
a second CLOSE air passageway defined within said upper-air cylinder and
fluidically connected to said second cylinder chamber defined within said
upper-air cylinder.
5. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein:
said valve member comprises a ball valve member.
6. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 5, wherein:
said valve seat has a substantially arcuate, hemispherical configuration
for accommodating said ball valve member.
7. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein:
said first and second pistons are internally threaded so as to be
threadedly mounted upon said axially central and second axial end portions
of said piston rod.
8. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein:
said piston rod comprises first and second piston rods coaxially connected
to each other.
9. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 8, wherein:
said first and second pistons are internally threaded so as to be
respectively threadedly mounted upon said first and second piston rods.
10. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 2, further comprising:
spring means operatively mounted within said upper-air cylinder and engaged
with said second piston disposed within said second cylinder chamber for
biasing said valve member, through means of said dual-piston multiplier
assembly, toward said valve seat.
11. A material dispensing valve assembly, comprising:
a housing having a longitudinal axis;
a die orifice defined within a first axial end of said housing and through
which a material is able to be dispensed;
first passageway means defined within said housing for conducting the
material to be dispensed to said die orifice;
a valve seat operatively associated with said die orifice;
a valve member operatively associated with said valve seat for movement
between OPENED and CLOSED positions with respect to said valve seat;
a piston rod for supporting said valve member upon a first axial end
portion thereof;
first and second cylinder chambers defined within axially central and
second axial end portions of said housing;
first and second pistons mounted upon axially central and second axial end
portions of said piston rod and respectively disposed within said first
and second cylinder chambers so as to define with said piston rod and said
first and second cylinder chambers a dual-piston multiplier assembly;
a first OPEN air passageway defined within said housing for transmitting
OPEN air into said first cylinder chamber for acting upon a first
undersurface portion of said first piston, and a second OPEN air
passageway defined within said housing and disposed externally of said
piston rod for transmitting OPEN air from said first cylinder chamber into
said second cylinder chamber for acting upon a first undersurface portion
of said second piston in order to simultaneously move said first and
second pistons in a first vertically upward direction so as to lift said
valve member from said valve seat and OPEN said valve assembly so as to
permit dispensing of the material from said die orifice; and
CLOSE air passageway means defined within said housing for transmitting
CLOSE air to second upper surface portions of said first and second
pistons in order to simultaneously move said first and second pistons in a
second vertically downward direction so as to move said valve member
toward said valve seat and CLOSE said valve assembly so as to terminate
dispensing of the material from said die orifice.
12. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 11, wherein said housing
comprises:
a lower module body within which said die orifice is disposed;
an axially central middle-air cylinder disposed axially atop said lower
module body and within which said first cylinder chamber is disposed; and
an upper-air cylinder disposed axially atop said middle-air cylinder and
within which said second cylinder chamber is disposed.
13. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 12, wherein said OPEN air
passageway means comprises:
a first OPEN air passageway defined within said lower module body and
fludically connected to said first cylinder chamber defined within said
middle-air cylinder; and
a second OPEN air passageway defined within said middle-air cylinder and
fluidically connecting said first cylinder chamber defined within said
middle-air cylinder to said second cylinder chamber defined within said
upper-air cylinder,
whereby OPEN air can simultaneously impinge upon said first undersurface
portions of said first and second pistons.
14. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 12, wherein said CLOSE air
passageway means comprises:
a first CLOSE air passageway defined within said middle-air cylinder and
fluidically connected to said first cylinder chamber defined within said
middle-air cylinder; and
a second CLOSE air passageway defined within said upper-air cylinder and
fluidically connected to said second cylinder chamber defined within said
upper-air cylinder.
15. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 11, wherein:
said valve member comprises a ball valve member.
16. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 15, wherein:
said valve seat has a substantially arcuate, hemispherical configuration
for accommodating said ball valve member.
17. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 11, wherein:
said first and second pistons are internally threaded so as to be
threadedly mounted upon said axially central and second axial end portions
of said piston rod.
18. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 11, wherein:
said piston rod comprises first and second piston rods coaxially connected
to each other.
19. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 18, wherein:
said first and second pistons are internally threaded so as to be
respectively threadedly mounted upon said first and second piston rods.
20. The valve assembly as set forth in claim 12, further comprising:
spring means operatively mounted within said upper-air cylinder and engaged
with said second piston disposed within said second cylinder chamber for
biasing said valve member, through means of said dual-piston multiplier
assembly, toward said valve seat.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to pneumatically-activated control
valves, and more particularly to a new and improved
pneumatically-activated control valve for use in connection with the
controlled discharge of hot melt adhesive materials to an applicator
device or nozzle.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Pneumatically-activated control valves are of course well-known in the art,
and such valves have also been known in the art for their use in
connection with the controlled discharge of various materials, including,
for example, the controlled discharge of hot melt adhesive materials to an
applicator device or nozzle. An exemplary, well-known
pneumatically-activated control valve, having the product designation
MR1300 and manufactured by ITW DYNATEC of Hendersonville, Tenn., is
illustrated in FIG. 1. For background purposes, the illustrated valve
assembly will not be described in exhaustive detail, but will only be
described in sufficient detail in order to provide a sufficient
understanding of the major components of the valve assembly and the
operation thereof.
More particularly, the valve assembly is generally indicated by the
reference character 10 and is seen to comprise a module body 12 which has
mounted within the lower end portion thereof a nozzle adapter and valve
seat assembly 14. A piston assembly, comprising a piston valve stem 16,
which passes through a seal cartridge 18 such that the lower end of the
piston valve stem 16 operatively cooperates with the valve seat of the
assembly 14 so as to selectively control the discharge of adhesive
material from the valve assembly 10 during adhesive application cycles,
and a piston head 20 swaged to the upper end of the piston valve stem 16,
is vertically movable within the valve assembly 10 so as to achieve the
OPEN and CLOSED states of the valve assembly 10 as desired for adhesive
application cycles.
An air cylinder 22 is bolted to the upper end of the module body 12 by
means of a plurality of threaded bolt fasteners 24, and an O-ring 26 is
mounted within a sidewall portion of air cylinder 22 so as to be disposed
around an air inlet passage, not shown, through which pneumatic air is
transmitted so as to act upon the upper surface of piston head 20 when it
is desired to move the piston assembly vertically downwardly in order to
move the lower end of the piston valve stem 16 from its OPENED position to
its CLOSED position with respect to the valve seat of the nozzle adapter
and valve seat assembly 14 so as to terminate the discharge of adhesive
material from the valve assembly 10. A stop member 28 is coaxially mounted
within the upper end of the air cylinder 22, and secured therein by means
of a hex nut 30, so as to limit the upward movement of the piston
assembly, and a pair of inner and outer coil springs 32,34 are
respectively disposed about the lower end of the stop member 28 and engage
the upper surface of the piston head 20 so as to tend to bias the piston
assembly downwardly whereby the piston valve stem 16 is effectively biased
toward its CLOSED position.
The upper end of the module body 12 is provided with a recessed or
counterbored seat 36 and an axial passageway 38 for accommodating the seal
cartridge 18, a seal cartridge gasket being illustrated at 40. Another
O-ring member 42 is adapted to be mounted upon an upper sidewall portion
of the module body 12 so as to be disposed around an air inlet passage,
not shown, through which pneumatic air is transmitted so as to act upon
the undersurface of piston head 20 and thereby cause vertically upward
movement of the piston assembly, and the consequent lifting of the lower
end portion of the piston valve stem 16 with respect to the valve seat of
the nozzle adapter and valve seat assembly 14, from its CLOSED position to
its OPENED position, when it is desired to discharge adhesive material
from the valve assembly 10. A third O-ring member 44 is adapted to be
mounted upon a lower sidewall portion of the module body 12 so as to be
disposed around an adhesive material inlet passage, also not shown,
through which the supply of adhesive material is transmitted to the valve
assembly 10.
While the aforenoted valve assembly 10 is of course quite satisfactory from
an operational point of view, and has enjoyed and exhibited substantial
commercial success, there are manufacturing processes and production
assembly lines which utilize adhesive material valve applicators or
assemblies similar to the valve assembly 10 but which require an adhesive
material production output, discharge, or flow-through, per unit of time,
which is greater than that able to be produced by means of a valve
assembly such as the valve assembly 10 illustrated in FIG. 1 or similar
thereto.
Accordingly, in order to achieve such a desired increased or enhanced
adhesive material output, several options are possible and have been
suggested, however, for one or more reasons, none of such options have
proven or seem to be viable. For example, a first proposed option would be
to utilize a larger valve assembly, however, larger valve assemblies are
slower in operation thereby presenting problems in connection with the
satisfaction of production line requirements, and in addition, the larger
valve assembly, by definition, as a result of being larger, would not in
effect be able to fit or be accommodated within the footprint of the
existing valve assemblies whereby the newer valve assemblies would not be
able to be retrofitted upon existing valve heads or modules.
A second alternatively proposed option would be to utilize a larger number
of valve assemblies or modules in order to increase the adhesive material
output as required, however, hot melt adhesive valve assemblies or modules
require a predetermined amount of periodic maintenance. It is therefore
desirable from a production point of view, as well as from a
cost-effective point of view, to operationally limit the number of valve
assemblies or modules in order to accordingly limit the amount of
maintenance required in connection with the serviceability of the various
valve assemblies or modules comprising a particular production line or
arrangement, and the costs involved in maintaining the production line or
arrangement in service without significant downtime.
A need therefore exists in the art for a new and improved high-flow
pneumatically-controlled, hot melt adhesive applicator valve assembly
which is able to discharge or dispense substantially large quantities of
hot melt adhesive material, which exhibits relatively high-speed OPEN and
CLOSE operational cycles so as to accurately achieve the discharge or
dispensing operations as desired and when required despite the enhanced
amount of hot melt adhesive material being discharged or dispensed, and
which is substantially the same size as the known or prior art valve
assemblies such that the new and improved high-flow
pneumatically-controlled, hot melt adhesive applicator valve assemblies
have substantially the same footprints as those of the known or prior art
valve assemblies whereby the new and improved high-flow
pneumatically-controlled, hot melt adhesive applicator valve assemblies
can be retrofitted upon existing pneumatically-controlled, hot melt
adhesive applicator valve assembly equipment.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new and
improved high-flow, pneumatically-controlled, hot melt adhesive applicator
valve assembly.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved
high-flow, pneumatically-controlled, hot melt adhesive applicator valve
assembly which overcomes the various drawbacks and disadvantages of prior
art pneumatically-controlled, hot melt adhesive applicator valve
assemblies.
An additional object of the present invention is to provide a new and
improved high-flow, pneumatically-controlled, hot melt adhesive applicator
valve assembly which enhances the output production of the valve with
respect to existing pneumatically-controlled hot melt adhesive valves, is
of the same size as existing pneumatically-controlled hot melt adhesive
valves, and still further, is able to operate with sufficiently high speed
parameters as required.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved
high-flow, pneumatically-controlled, hot melt adhesive applicator valve
which is relatively simple in construction and relatively inexpensive to
manufacture.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The foregoing and other objectives are achieved in accordance with the
teachings and principles of the present invention through the provision of
a new and improved high-flow pneumatically-controlled hot melt adhesive
applicator valve assembly which comprises an enlarged hot melt adhesive
material dispensing or discharge orifice, a piston assembly comprising a
plurality of vertically aligned piston stems fixedly connected together, a
ball valve member fixedly mounted upon the lower end of the lower one of
the piston stems and operatively associated with an arcuately-configured
valve seat, and a piston multiplier assembly comprising a plurality of
pistons respectively operatively associated with the plurality of piston
stems so as to reciprocally drive the piston assembly, and the ball valve
member fixedly mounted upon the lower end of the lower one of the piston
stems, through vertical movements which enable the ball valve member to
OPEN and CLOSE the valve assembly discharge or dispensing orifice. A
mid-air cylinder housing is disposed atop the valve or module body so as
to accommodate the lower one of the two pistons, and in addition, the
mid-air cylinder provides for the routing of OPEN air to the upper one of
the two pistons which is disposed within an upper cylinder housing
disposed atop the mid-air cylinder housing.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Various other objects, features, and attendant advantages of the present
invention will be more fully appreciated from the following detailed
description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings
in which like reference characters designate like or corresponding parts
throughout the several views, and wherein:
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a PRIOR ART
pneumatically-controlled, hot melt adhesive applicator valve assembly
showing the primary component parts thereof; and
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the new and improved high-flow
pneumatically-controlled, hot melt adhesive applicator valve assembly
constructed in accordance with the teachings and principles of the present
invention and disclosing the component parts thereof.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to FIG. 2 thereof, the
new and improved high-flow, pneumatically controlled, hot melt adhesive
applicator valve assembly is disclosed and is generally indicated by the
reference character 110. It is to be initially noted that component parts
of the new and improved high-flow, pneumatically controlled, hot melt
adhesive applicator valve assembly 110, constructed in accordance with the
teachings and principles of the present invention and disclosed in FIG. 2,
which are similar to those component parts of the PRIOR ART pneumatically
controlled, hot melt adhesive applicator valve assembly 10 disclosed in
FIG. 1, will be designated by reference characters similar to those used
in connection with the PRIOR ART pneumatically controlled, hot melt
adhesive applicator valve assembly 10 disclosed in FIG. 1 except that that
reference characters used in connection with the high-flow, pneumatically
controlled, hot melt adhesive applicator valve assembly 110 of the present
invention will be within the 100 series.
Referring then more particularly to FIG. 2, the new and improved high-flow,
pneumatically-controlled, hot melt adhesive applicator valve assembly 110
constructed in accordance with the teachings and principles of the present
invention is seen to comprise a valve or module body 112 within which
there is mounted a die member 114. The die member 114, in turn, comprises
a die orifice 113 from which adhesive material is discharged or dispensed,
and the die orifice 113 has an annular valve seat 115 integrally formed at
the upper end thereof. The annular valve seat 115 has an arcuate or
hemispherical configuration so as to be adapted to seat a ball valve
member 117 which is soldered upon the lower end of a first, lower piston
stem 116. The valve or module body 112 is provided with a first radially
extending passageway 119, at an axial position which is located within a
substantially lower, central portion of the valve or module body 112, so
as to permit hot melt adhesive material to be conducted into the valve
assembly 110. An axially extending passageway 121 fluidically
interconnects the radially extending passageway 119 to the die orifice 113
so as to conduct the hot melt adhesive material to the die orifice 113
when the same is to be discharged from the valve assembly 110. An O-ring
sealing member 123 annularly surrounds adhesive intake charge passageway
119.
The upper end of the valve or module body 112 is provided with a
counterbored recessed portion 136, and a seal cartridge assembly 118 is
adapted to have its lower end portion disposed within the counterbored
recessed portion 136 of the valve or module body 112. A middle air
cylinder housing 122 is adapted to be disposed atop the lower valve or
module body 112, and it is seen that the lower end of the middle air
cylinder housing 122 is provided with a counterbored recessed portion 146
so as to accommodate the upper end of the seal cartridge assembly 118
whereby the seal cartridge assembly 118 in effect sealingly bridges the
lower valve or module body 112 and the middle air cylinder housing 122.
The middle air cylinder housing 122 is seen to further comprise a first,
lower cylinder 148 within which is defined a first, lower cylinder chamber
150, and a first, lower piston 152 is disposed within the first, lower
cylinder chamber 150 so as to undergo reciprocal vertical movement
therewithin. The first, lower piston 152 is internally threaded so as to
be threadedly secured upon the upper end of the first, lower piston stem
or rod 116.
The lower valve or module body 112 is seen to further comprise a second,
radially extending passageway 154 defined at an axial position which is
located adjacent to the upper end of the lower valve or module body 112,
and an axially extending passageway 156 extends axially upwardly through
the upper end of the lower valve or module body 112 and through the seal
cartridge assembly 118. Second, radially extending passageway 154 is
provided for introducing OPEN air into the valve assembly 110, and
consequently, axially extending passageway 156 fluidically interconnects
second, radially extending passageway 154 to the lower end portion of the
first, lower cylinder chamber 150 so as to permit OPEN air to impinge upon
the lower or undersurface of first, lower piston 152 when it is desired to
lift ball valve member 117 from its valve seat 115. An O-ring sealing
member 142 annularly surrounds second, radially extending passageway 154.
In addition, the seal cartridge assembly 118 further comprises a first,
lower seal member 158 for sealing the first, lower piston stem or rod 116
with respect to hot melt adhesive material flowing into axial passageway
121 from radial intake charge passageway 119, and a second, upper seal
member 160 for sealing the first, lower piston stem or rod 116 with
respect to OPEN air flowing into the lower end portion of the first, lower
cylinder chamber 150, defined between the seal cartridge assembly 118 and
the first, lower piston 152, from axial passageway 156. The first, lower
piston 152 is also provided with an annular O-ring sealing member 153 for
sealing the first, lower piston 152 with respect to the interior wall
surface portions of the first, lower cylinder 148.
Disposed atop the middle air cylinder housing 122, there is provided an
upper air cylinder housing 161 within the lower portion of which there is
defined a second, upper cylinder 162. The second, upper cylinder 162 has a
second, upper cylinder chamber 164 defined therein, and a second, upper
piston 166 is disposed within the second, upper cylinder chamber 164. A
second, upper piston rod or stem 168 is coaxially disposed with respect to
first, lower piston rod or stem 116 and is fixedly connected to first,
lower piston rod or stem 116 by means of a coupling nut 170. In a manner
similar to first, lower piston 152 and first, lower piston rod or stem
116, second, upper piston 166 is internally threaded so as to be
threadedly mounted upon the upper end of second, upper piston rod or stem
168. Second, upper piston 166 is adapted to be reciprocally movable in
vertically upward and downward directions within the second, upper
cylinder chamber 164, and in order to seal the second, upper piston 166
with respect to the interior wall surface portions of second, upper
cylinder 162, second, upper piston 166 is provided with an annular O-ring
sealing member 172. In order to fixedly retain second, upper piston 166 at
its axial threaded position upon the upper end of the second, upper piston
rod or stem 168, a nut member 173 is threadedly secured upon the upper
threaded end of the second, upper piston rod or stem 168.
In order to provide for the vertically reciprocal upward movements of the
second, upper piston 166, with respect to second, upper cylinder chamber
164, and in conjunction with the vertically reciprocal, upward movements
of the first, lower piston 152 with respect to first, lower cylinder
chamber 150, middle air cylinder 122 is further provided with an internal
OPEN air passageway 174 which fluidically interconnects the lower end
portion of first, lower cylinder chamber 150 with the lower end portion of
second, upper cylinder chamber 164. In this manner, when OPEN air is
introduced into the valve assembly 110 through means of radial passageway
154 and axial passageway 156, OPEN air is conducted from the lower end
portion of first, lower cylinder chamber 150 and into internal passageway
174 whereby the OPEN air is introduced into the lower end portion of
second, upper cylinder chamber 164 so as to be able to impinge upon the
lower or undersurface portion of the second, upper piston 166.
Accordingly, upper and lower pistons 166 and 152, along with upper and
lower piston stems or rods 168 and 116, which comprise a multiple piston
multiplier assembly, are able to be moved vertically upward in a
synchronized manner with respect to each other so as to operate together
in rapidly moving ball valve member 117 vertically upwardly and away from
its valve seat 115 in order to permit a predeterminedly controlled amount
of hot melt adhesive material to be discharged from applicator die orifice
113. It is also noted that a stem seal cartridge or assembly 175 is
provided upon a substantially axially central portion of the second, upper
piston stem or rod 168 so as to seal the same with respect to the OPEN air
conducted into the lower end portion of the second, upper cylinder chamber
164 from the internal OPEN air passageway 174.
In a manner similar to that previously described in connection with the
provision of OPEN air to the multiple piston multiplier assembly, and in
order to provide for the simultaneous or synchronized vertically
reciprocal downward movements of both the first, lower and second, upper
pistons 152 and 166 with respect to first, lower and second, upper
cylinder chambers 150 and 164, along with first, lower and second, upper
piston rods or stems 116 and 168, so as to rapidly move ball valve member
117 in a vertically downward direction and thereby seat the ball valve
member 117 upon its valve seat 115 whereby the controlled discharge or
deposit of the hot melt adhesive material from die orifice 113 is
effectively blocked or terminated, the middle air cylinder 122 is provided
with a radially extending CLOSE air passageway 176, and upper air cylinder
161 is similarly provided with a radially extending CLOSE air passageway
178. Passageway 176 is fluidically connected to an internal bore or
chamber 180 defined or provided within the middle air cylinder housing
122, and internal bore or chamber 180 is fluidically connected to cylinder
chamber 150 such that CLOSE air transmitted through CLOSE air passageway
176 impinges upon the upper surface of first, lower piston 152. A support
member 182, for engaging coupling nut 170 and preventing rotation of the
same while permitting axial movement thereof along with the piston stems
or rods 116 and 168, is disposed within the upper end of cylinder chamber
150, and it is noted that support member 182 is of such structure as to
permit the CLOSE air from internal bore or chamber 180 to pass
therethrough and into cylinder chamber 150 whereupon the same can impinge
upon the upper surface of first, lower piston 152.
In a similar manner, upper air cylinder housing 161 is provided with an
internal bore or chamber 184, and the latter bore or chamber 184 is
fluidically connected to the CLOSE air passageway 178 as well as to the
upper end of the second, upper cylinder chamber 164. Accordingly, CLOSE
air transmitted through CLOSE air passageway 178 is able to impinge upon
the upper surface of second, upper piston 166 whereby the latter piston
166 together with first, lower piston 152 serve to move the ball valve
member 117 vertically downwardly in order to seat the ball valve member
117 upon its valve seat 115. An annular O-ring sealing member 126 is
operatively associated with the CLOSE air passageway 178, and an annular
O-ring sealing member 127 is operatively associated with the CLOSE air
passageway 176.
It is further noted that a coil spring 134 is disposed within the internal
bore or chamber 184 such that the upper end of spring 134 is engaged with
the upper end of chamber or bore 184 while the lower end of spring 134 is
seated atop the second, upper piston 166. In this manner, the coil spring
134 serves to bias the multiple piston multiplier assembly downwardly so
as to ensure proper seating of the ball valve member 117 upon its valve
seat 115 should, for example, a failure be experienced in the CLOSE air
transmission portion or routing section of the system. A stop member 128
is also mounted within the upper end of the upper air cylinder housing 161
such that the lower end of the stop member 128 projects into the internal
bore or chamber 184, and a nut member 130 is engaged with the stop member
128 so as to retain the lower end portion of the stop member 128 at a
predetermined axial position within the bore or chamber 184. In this
manner, the lower end portion of the stop member 128 is disposed at a
predetermined position with respect to the upper end of the second, upper
piston rod or stem 168 so as to limit upward axial movement of the
multiple piston multiplier assembly when OPEN air impinges thereon.
Thus, it may be seen that in accordance with the principles and teachings
of the present invention, a new and improved high-flow,
pneumatically-controlled, hot melt adhesive applicator valve assembly 110
has been disclosed wherein as a result of the inclusion, within the
structural arrangement thereof, of the middle air cylinder housing 122,
the first, lower piston 152, the first, lower piston rod or stem 116, and
the internal OPEN air passageway 174, in addition to, or in conjunction
with, the provision of the second, upper piston 166 disposed within the
upper air cylinder housing 161, and the second, upper piston rod or stem
168, a multiple or dual-piston multiplier has been effectively integrally
incorporated or provided within the valve assembly 110 whereby enhanced
operational speed of the valve assembly 110, during both its OPEN and
CLOSE operational phases or stages, has been able to be achieved so as to
in turn provide the predetermined controlled and enhanced discharge or
deposit of the hot melt adhesive material from the die orifice 113 as
determined or controlled by means of the ball valve member 117. It is to
be noted that the foregoing has also been achieved in conjunction with a
single enlarged valve or die orifice 113 whereby not only is enhanced
volume flow or through-put of hot melt adhesive material from die or valve
orifice 113 achieved, but such discharge or deposit of the hot melt
adhesive material is achieved at speeds acceptable in the industry and by
means of a single valve module which minimizes the number of valve modules
which need to be used and maintained. In addition, the valve assembly 110
of the present invention can be retrofitted upon existing hot melt
adhesive material discharge or deposit equipment or apparatus so as to
replace existing PRIOR ART hot melt adhesive valve assemblies such as the
valve assembly 10 disclosed within FIG. 1.
It is to be further appreciated that by utilizing a ball valve member 117,
the OPEN and CLOSE movements of the ball valve member 117 with respect to
its valve seat 115 is also enhanced or facilitated. More particularly, hot
melt adhesive material is introduced into the valve assembly 110 through
means of radially extending passageway 119 and is disposed within
vertically extending axial passageway 121. Accordingly, when the ball
valve member 117 is OPENED and lifted from its valve seat 115 as a result
of the impingement of OPEN air upon the lower or undersurface portions of
upper and lower pistons 166 and 152, respectively, the ball valve member
117 is, in effect, forced upwardly through the mass of hot melt adhesive
disposed within the vertically extending axial passageway 121 whereupon
such hot melt adhesive material, the pressure head of which had also just
previously been assisting the maintenance of the ball valve member 117
upon its valve seat 115, now effectively slips by or passes downwardly
around ball valve member 117 so as to assist the OPENING movement thereof.
When the ball valve member 117 is moved in the opposite direction, that is,
toward the valve seat 115 so as to achieve a CLOSE operation, as a result
of CLOSE air impinging upon the upper surface portions of the pistons 152
and 166, the opposite forces and pressures effectively prevail. More
particularly, as the ball valve member 117 moves downwardly through the
mass of hot melt adhesive material being discharged from the die orifice
113, the hot melt adhesive material, which had previously been assisting
the maintenance of the ball valve member 117 at its OPEN position, will
now tend to flow upwardly with respect to ball valve member 117, and
around the same, so as to in effect re-establish a pressure head which
tends to assist the CLOSING of the ball valve member 117 and the retention
of the same upon its valve seat 115.
Obviously, many variations and modifications of the present invention are
possible in light of the above teachings. For example, while the CLOSE air
passageways 176,178 have been disclosed as separate passageways separately
supplied with the CLOSE air, it is to be appreciated that the CLOSE air
passageways 176,178 may be fluidically interconnected in a manner similar
to that fluidically interconnecting the cylinder chambers 150,164 with
respect to the supply of OPEN air thereto. It is therefore to be
understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the present
invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described
herein.
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